Data points
- Revenue-item de minimis for a master file and a local file[1]
- EUR 6m
- Capital-item de minimis for a master file and a local file[1]
- EUR 20m
- Participation that makes two enterprises associated, or 50% inside a multinational group[1]
- 75%
- Basis years from which the transfer pricing rules apply[1]
- Jan 1, 2024
- Basis years from which grandfathered pre-2024 arrangements come into scope[1]
- Jan 1, 2027
- Fee to request a unilateral advance pricing agreement[1]
- EUR 5,000
- Longest term of a unilateral advance pricing agreement[1]
- 5 years
- After the group's fiscal year end to file the country-by-country report[4]
- 12 months
Malta had no codified transfer pricing regime before 2022. The rules bite for basis years starting on or after 1 January 2024, so most Maltese entities are in their first or second cycle now and have no filing history to fall back on.
The four facts to know:
- A master file and a local file are required once cross-border dealings with associated enterprises pass EUR 6 million for revenue items or EUR 20 million for capital items in the preceding year.
- Micro, small and medium-sized enterprises are out of scope entirely, whatever their numbers.
- Neither file is filed. Both are kept and handed to the Malta Tax and Customs Administration inside the window its request sets.
- Arrangements that existed before 2024 and have not been materially altered come into scope from basis years starting 1 January 2027.
Who do Malta's transfer pricing rules apply to?
Cross-border arrangements between associated enterprises, once the de minimis is passed and the company is not a micro, small or medium-sized enterprise. Association turns on more than 75% of the voting rights or ordinary capital, or control. Inside a multinational group that drops to 50%, so a half-owned joint venture company that sits outside the test in most countries can sit inside it here. The 2022 transfer pricing rules[1] set both numbers.
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| Scope rule | Value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Association threshold | More than 75% of voting rights or ordinary capital, or control | Government of Malta |
| Association threshold inside a multinational group | 50% for constituent entities of the same group | Government of Malta |
| Small business exclusion | Micro, small and medium-sized enterprises excluded, on the European Union definition | Government of Malta |
| De minimis | EUR 6,000,000 revenue items or EUR 20,000,000 capital items, aggregate arm's length value in the preceding year | Government of Malta |
| Effective date | Basis years commencing on or after 1 January 2024 | Government of Malta |
| Grandfathered arrangements | Pre-2024 arrangements not materially altered come into scope from basis years commencing 1 January 2027 | Government of Malta |
The rules were made in November 2022 and amended in January 2024. The tax authority keeps an overview of the regime[2] alongside them.
Do I need a master file and a local file in Malta?
Yes, if you are in scope and your aggregate arm's length value of cross-border arrangements with associated enterprises passed EUR 6,000,000 for revenue items or EUR 20,000,000 for capital items in the preceding year. One threshold covers both files. That is unusual: in most regimes the master file carries a higher trigger than the local file, so a group that is used to preparing only a local file elsewhere owes both here.
The content requirements track the OECD annexes, as the tax authority's guidelines on the transfer pricing rules[3] set out.
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| Feature | Master file | Local file | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| What it covers | The group worldwide, on the OECD master file annex | The Maltese entity's own arrangements, on the OECD local file annex | Malta Tax and Customs Administration |
| Trigger | EUR 6m revenue or EUR 20m capital, small businesses excluded | EUR 6m revenue or EUR 20m capital, small businesses excluded | Government of Malta |
| When it is due | On request, inside the time the request states | On request, inside the time the request states | Malta Tax and Customs Administration |
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Does Malta require a transfer pricing return or form?
No transfer pricing return and no local disclosure form appear in the rules or in the tax authority's guidelines. The field is recorded as not confirmed in our dataset, last verified on 14 October 2026. We state the gap rather than name a form that may not exist.
When is Malta transfer pricing documentation due?
Nothing runs on a calendar except country-by-country reporting. The master file and the local file are produced on request, inside the time that request states, which means the only safe posture is to have both finished before a request can arrive.
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| Obligation | 2026 deadline | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Master file and local file | On request, within a reasonable time stated in the request | Malta Tax and Customs Administration |
| Country-by-country report | Within 12 months of the group's fiscal year end | Government of Malta |
| Country-by-country notification | By the statutory tax return date of the fiscal year | Malta Tax and Customs Administration |
What are Malta's country-by-country reporting requirements?
A Malta-resident constituent entity of an in-scope multinational group tells the Commissioner which entity in the group is filing the report, by the statutory tax return date of the fiscal year. The report itself is due within 12 months of the group's fiscal year end. The rule comes from Malta's tax cooperation regulations[4], and the tax authority publishes the notification route[5].
This is a separate obligation from the master file and the local file, with its own trigger. The group revenue threshold is not confirmed from the primary source we could verify, so this page does not state one. Check it with your Maltese adviser before relying on a figure from elsewhere.
What language must Malta transfer pricing documentation be in?
English or Maltese. An English-language group master file is usable as it stands, which takes a translation cost out of the Maltese file. No currency rule appears in the sources we verified, so none is stated here.
What are the penalties for missing transfer pricing documentation in Malta?
Malta's transfer pricing rules set no documentation penalty of their own. We found no transfer pricing penalty in the rules or in the tax authority's guidelines, so the amount is recorded as not confirmed. The general compliance provisions of the income tax law remain the backdrop, and the practical exposure is the adjustment rather than a fixed fine.
Pages that quote a Malta transfer pricing penalty figure are importing a generic number from somewhere else. We do not invent amounts where the primary source sets none.
What is a foreign parent exposed to in Malta?
A Maltese subsidiary above the de minimis has to hold group-level documentation that only the parent can supply. The parent feeds the master file content, answers requests inside the window the tax authority sets, and makes sure the country-by-country notification goes in by the tax return date.
Watch 2027. Arrangements signed before 2024 that have not been materially altered come into scope from basis years commencing 1 January 2027. A parent sitting on old intercompany agreements has a dated runway, not an open one, and any amendment to one of those agreements before then pulls it into scope early.
Does Malta offer advance pricing agreements or safe harbours?
Yes to both. Malta runs a unilateral advance pricing agreement, a separate unilateral ruling for downward adjustments, and it accepts the OECD simplified approach for low value-adding services. The de minimis is itself a safe harbour: below it the rules do not apply at all.
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| Mechanism | Terms | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Unilateral advance pricing agreement | EUR 5,000 request fee, EUR 2,000 renewal. Term up to 5 years. May cover up to 3 prior basis years | Government of Malta |
| Unilateral ruling on downward adjustments | EUR 3,000 fee, EUR 1,000 renewal. Binding for 5 years | Government of Malta |
| Low value-adding services | Simplified approach allowed, in line with OECD and European Union guidance. No fixed markup set | Malta Tax and Customs Administration |
| De minimis | The rules do not apply below EUR 6m revenue or EUR 20m capital | Government of Malta |
Whether bilateral and multilateral agreements are available is not confirmed in the sources we verified.
How do Malta's rules compare with the OECD baseline?
Closely. Malta is not an OECD member but is an Inclusive Framework member, and its rules adopt the OECD guidelines by reference. The master file and the local file map directly onto the OECD content annexes, so a group that already builds OECD-shaped files has little to redraft.
The age of the regime is the real difference. Malta is the European Union's newest codified transfer pricing regime. There were no rules before 2022, the regime took effect from 1 January 2024, and grandfathered arrangements arrive in 2027. Any guidance dated before 2022 describes a Malta that did not require any of this.
How we help with Malta transfer pricing
The Maltese file has no deadline until a request lands, and then it has a short one. We build and maintain the master file and the local file so they are finished before that request, track the EUR 6 million and EUR 20 million thresholds against your actual intercompany flows, and keep the intercompany agreements saying what the documentation says. See how our transfer pricing software works.
Book a demo to check whether your Malta arrangements cross the EUR 6 million threshold this year.
Official sources
5 sources
- 1.Government of Malta. Transfer Pricing Rules (S.L. 123.207, L.N. 284 of 2022, as amended)
- 2.Malta Tax and Customs Administration. Transfer pricing overview
- 3.Malta Tax and Customs Administration. Guidelines on the Transfer Pricing Rules
- 4.Government of Malta. Cooperation with Other Jurisdictions on Tax Matters Regulations (S.L. 123.127)
- 5.Malta Tax and Customs Administration. Country-by-country reporting (DAC4)
Article by
Logan Jackonis
Head of Services & Operations, Commenda
Logan leads Commenda’s Services and Operations team, helping controllers, heads of tax, and finance leaders navigate international expansion. He built a global expert network across 70 countries and previously worked in management consulting across the Middle East and Southeast Asia.
Disclaimer: Commenda and its affiliates do not provide tax, accounting, or legal advice. This material has been prepared for informational purposes only, and is not intended to provide or be relied on for tax, accounting, or legal advice. You should consult your own tax, accounting, and legal advisors before engaging in any related activities or transactions.
